EU, US suspend certain sanctions as Iran halts 20% uranium enrichment

A general view shows the Iranian nuclear power plant of Natanz, 270 kms south of Tehran (AFP Photo) / AFP

Washington and Brussels have announced suspension of certain sanctions against Iran as it halts its 20 percent enrichment of uranium. This marks the landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and the six world powers coming into force.

The decision will ease restrictions on trade in petrochemicals,
precious metals and the provision of insurance for oil shipments.
The ban on vessels to transport Iranian crude will also be lifted
as part of the Joint Plan of Action, struck in November 2013
between Tehran and the so-called P5+1 (Britain, China, France,
Germany, Russia and the US).

The suspension will last for a period of six months, during which
time relevant contracts will have to be carried out, according to
the press release.

The rest of EU sanctions will remain in place such as an arms
embargo, all related technical and financial assistance, as will
an asset freeze and a travel ban on targeted entities and
persons.

The White House welcomed the Iranian nuclear curbs as an
“unprecedented opportunity,” while a US official said
that Secretary of State John Kerry welcomed the easing of EU
sanctions on Tehran.

The US State Department also said that the upcoming negotiations
with Iran about its nuclear program will be complex, but that the
US is “clear-eyed” about the difficulties lying ahead.

Earlier in the day, Tehran announced a halt in its uranium
enrichment program. Centrifuge cascades at Iranian nuclear plants
were disconnected under the supervision of UN nuclear inspectors,
who arrived in Iran over the weekend to check Iran’s compliance
with the deal.

"In line with the implementation of the Geneva joint plan of
action, Iran suspended the production of 20 percent enriched
uranium in the presence of UN nuclear watchdog inspectors at
Natanz and Fordo sites," AFP cited Mohammad Amiri, director
general for safeguards at Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation.

Apart from suspending enrichment of uranium to 20 percent – the
level that’s close to the one needed for nuclear weapons
production – Iran has also pledged to dilute half of the
stockpile of the already enriched material.

A confidential report by the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA), obtained by Reuters, has confirmed that Iran “has
ceased enriching uranium above 5 percent U-235 at the two
cascades at the Pilot Fuel Enrichment Plant (PFEP) and four
cascades at the Fordo Fuel Enrichment Plant (FFEP) previously
used for this purpose."

The same report states that Iran has stopped "conducting any
further advances" to its activities at the Arak heavy-water
nuclear reactor, which Western powers feared could produce
plutonium to be used as bomb fuel.

According to the agreement Iran is freezing parts of its nuclear
program in exchange for the easing of sanctions by the EU and the
US, including lifting restrictions on Iranian exports of
petrochemicals. Iran will also be able to import parts for its
auto manufacturing industry and trade in gold and other precious
metals.

The value of sanctions relief could amount to $7 billion,
according to US government estimates.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is expected to try to persuade
Western companies to invest in Iran at the World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. Several European political
and trade delegations have already visited the country in recent
weeks, signaling a thaw in the EU-Iran relations.

The interim nuclear deal with Iran which came into force Monday
will be in effect for six months, until the country and the P5+1
strike a permanent agreement, supposed to bring more stability to
the volatile Middle East.

Achieving that won’t be easy though, as RT’s Middle East
correspondent Paula Slier reports from Tel Aviv, where the
government is the main opponent of the accord.

“What is not clear in how the US is going to maneuver its way
forward,” Slier says. “It has a very fine line to walk.
On the one hand you have Israel that continues to say that this
was the deal with the devil. But on the other hand you have Iran,
which Barack Obama is urging to come to the party, and he himself
needs to show transparency and commitment while not alienating
his friend, Tel Aviv, in the region.”

There are also threats for more sanctions coming from a group of
US senators, who have been preparing
legislation to enact new economic constraints in case no new deal
is reached in six months.

Tehran has long been irritated by the plans voiced in the US
Congress.

“Those in the United States who are pushing for more
sanctions have to see what this policy has produced and whether
it is worth risking. I don’t want to get engaged in a childish
discussion on whether Iran is bluffing or not. They can test
us,” Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told RT’s Sophie Shevardnadze earlier in January.